Israel, US Launch Preemptive Strike on Iran: Tehran Bombed

Spread love

Presidential compound, intelligence headquarters and airport among dozens of targets hit in daylight attack; Iran’s Supreme Leader reported moved to secure location; second wave of strikes underway

By TRH World Desk

New Delhi, February 28, 2026 — Israel and the United States have launched a joint military strike on Iran in a major escalation with potentially global consequences. Multiple explosions have rocked Tehran and other Iranian cities in what Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz has described as a “preemptive strike” carried out to “remove threats against the State of Israel.”

The attack is being conducted in daylight. Thick smoke has been seen rising over Tehran’s skyline, and sirens have sounded across Israel simultaneously with the strikes.

Several missiles struck University Street and the Jomhouri area in central Tehran, according to Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency, with smoke rising over the city reported by an Al Jazeera correspondent on the ground. The Associated Press reported that one of the strikes occurred near the office of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei.

A US official confirmed to NBC News that the United States is participating in the strikes, and that operations are ongoing.

Targets and Scale of the Attack

The scale of the operation appears extensive. Among the targets reported struck are the presidential compound, the Ministry of Intelligence headquarters, and Tehran’s international airport. Explosions have also been reported in the cities of Qom and Isfahan. Reports from Israeli media indicate that Iranian leaders were present in some of the buildings that were struck.

A second wave of strikes is reportedly underway. Both Israel and Iran have shut their airspace. Cell phone signals have been cut off in some parts of Tehran, according to Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is reported to have been transferred to a secure location outside Tehran ahead of or during the strikes.

Israel Declares State of Emergency

Israel launched what it called a “preemptive strike” against Iran on Saturday morning, according to Defence Minister Israel Katz, as a nationwide state of emergency was declared across the country.

The Israeli military issued alerts directly to citizens’ cellular devices, instructing the public to remain within proximity to protected spaces — a proactive measure to prepare for the possibility of Iranian missile retaliation. An Israeli government spokesperson acknowledged that retaliation is expected.

Background: Nuclear Talks, Military Buildup, and a Deteriorating Diplomatic Track

The strikes come at a moment of acute diplomatic tension. The US and Iran had held a third round of nuclear talks just days earlier, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stating that Iran’s refusal to discuss its ballistic missile program alongside its nuclear programme was a “big, big problem.”

US President Donald Trump warned earlier in February that “really bad things” would happen unless Tehran agreed to a deal, and the US had assembled a vast fleet of fighter jets and warships across the region in recent weeks. The USS Abraham Lincoln carrier group was already in the region; a second carrier strike group, the USS Ford, was ordered to the Middle East earlier this month.

The day before the strikes, the US ambassador to Israel sent an email to mission staff indicating that those who wished to leave the country should do so immediately — a warning first reported by The New York Times and subsequently confirmed by NBC News.

This is not the first US military action against Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. Last June, the US launched strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, causing what intelligence assessments described as severe damage. Iran retaliated with a strike on a US air base in Qatar, which caused minor damage but no casualties.

Iran’s Threatened Response

Tehran had warned it would not absorb an attack without consequence. Iran had vowed that if attacked it would retaliate against both American and Israeli bases across the region, warning of a “devastating war.”

Oil Markets on Alert

Energy markets had already been pricing in the rising tensions, with oil prices climbing to six-month highs on concerns of a potential supply shock. Iran is a founding member of OPEC and a major oil producer and sits at the strategic centre of the Strait of Hormuz — through which approximately 20 per cent of the world’s oil supply passes.

(This is a rapidly developing breaking news story. Details are being updated as confirmed information becomes available.)